


a cat on the windowsill

by ghostinthebook



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types, The Shadowhunter Chronicles - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Canon Divergence, Cat, Domestic Fluff, Domestic Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Fluff, How Do I Tag, M/M, POV Magnus Bane, cats and kids, i guess?, the story of malec getting a cat, what a thing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-05
Updated: 2019-05-05
Packaged: 2020-02-26 11:34:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18716227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ghostinthebook/pseuds/ghostinthebook
Summary: Is it time for them to get a cat? Magnus sure thinks so.





	a cat on the windowsill

**Author's Note:**

> okay, show fans note: i noticed how they don't have Chairman Meow in the show (except for the AU episode, 1x10) so this is set about five years in the future, after they adopted Max and Rafe.
> 
> book fans note: basically, this is an AU of if Magnus didn't own the Chairman but Malec met anyway and this is probably pre-Lady Midnight, they've already adopted Max and Rafe.
> 
> for both or neither: thank you and enjoy!!!

“Papa?” Rafael asked, grabbing Magnus’s attention. He had been reading a potions book, trying to find one that would help Max with the growing pains he felt with his horns. An important task, but one that could wait for a second. Last he checked, Max and Rafael had just started a Disney movie, which usually kept them occupied for a while. Maybe they wanted snacks?

“What is it, Rafe?” Magnus asked. He tried to remember what movie they had been watching. It had something to do with animals… Finding Nemo? The Lion King?

“Can we get a cat?’

Oh. It was Aristocats.

Wait. A cat?

“Max really wants a cat, too,” Rafe continued. “We can feed it and pet it and you and Daddy won’t have to take care of it.”

Magnus knew that a lot more than feeding and petting went into cat care, he had had cats more than a few times in his long life. Realistically, he and Alec would definitely be the ones taking care of the cat. They already had a three-year-old and a five-year-old, should they really add a cat into the mix?

Well… maybe.

It could be fun, letting the boys have a pet. Cats aren’t a bad choice, either. Usually not high maintenance, cute, and he could easily ward the apothecary so that it wouldn’t interrupt his High Warlock duties. People could cat-sit if they went on vacation. The loft wouldn’t feel as lonely when everyone was elsewhere.

The idea definitely had some potential.

“I’ll talk to Daddy about it.” After Magnus said that, Rafe smiled and started jumping around a bit, clearly excited. “But that doesn’t mean yes. It just means I’ll talk about it, okay?”

“Okay, Papa!” Rafe said, running out of the room, most likely to tell his brother what Magnus said. He didn’t regret giving a half-answer, not a yes but not a no. It was likely that, if he could convince Alec, they would get a cat.

Now he was thinking about cat names. It definitely had to be a pun.

A few hours later, Alec came home from the Institute. The boys immediately ran up to him, hugging his legs. The consequence of being tall and having two children of the ages five and under; if he didn’t bend down, he would get leg-hugs. He said hi and gave them kisses on the top of their heads, avoiding Max’s horns as he did. They had both quickly learned that if one of them gave Max a kiss on the head and didn’t avoid the horns, they’d get poked. Then Alec walked over to Magnus, giving him a quick kiss on the lips.

“Just got off of patrol, need to shower. See you in a bit,” Alec said, already walking towards their bedroom. Once he was done, they both played with the boys a bit longer until it was bedtime, then tucked them into bed. There was a half chance that they would be woken up in the middle of the night by either Max or Rafael, be it nightmares or any sort of things that ruins a child’s sleep, but for now, it was just the two of them.

“So,” Magnus started, both of them relaxing on the couch. “Rafael asked me a question today.”

“About?” Alec asked, sitting up slightly.

“He said that he and Max wanted to get a cat. I said I’d talk to you about it.”

Alec sat up fully, looking deep in thought for a few minutes. His brow would furrow, then unfurrow just as quickly. Magnus didn’t rush him, knowing that Alec wanted to think about his answer before saying anything. He seemed to come to a conclusion, and looked at Magnus.

“I think it’s a good idea, but the final decision should be up to you. You’d probably be the one taking care of it most of the time,” Alec said. He had a good point, but Magnus had already thought about that. He had predicted that Alec would say that, too. Well, not really. He knew Alec liked his cat eyes, but cats? Could go either way. But he knew that if Alec did like cats, his only concern would be if Magnus wanted a cat, too.

And if Magnus was being honest? He really wanted a cat. All they needed to do was find a cat that was good with young children, and they’d be set. 

He told Alec all that, and the smile he got in return was enough that if he hadn’t wanted a cat before, he’d want one now just to make Alec smile like that again.

The next morning, after the kids woke up, they all sat down for breakfast. Well, all of them except Alec, who was making it. He was hopeless at most cooking, but for some reason, he could make breakfast foods, and it would taste really good. Most dinners that he made were almost as bad as Isabelle’s, but he could make a great French toast. One of the odd things that made Alec himself, Magnus supposed.

This morning he was making pancakes, as per request of Max. The two boys still looked tired, but Magnus knew it was just because they woke up less than fifteen minutes ago. And once they knew the plans for the day, they would perk right up.

“Hey boys, guess what we’re doing today?” Magnus asked as Alec started plating the pancakes. They guessed various things, some were good ideas for another day, most were ridiculous.

“We’re going to go get a cat!” Magnus said, overplaying his excitement so that the boys would be happier. It worked, as they immediately started talking a mile a minute about the cat they wanted to get, forgetting their pancakes. Once he could get them to quiet down for a second, he told them they would go to the animal shelter after breakfast. That led to them eating their breakfast as fast as they possibly could, getting syrup on their pajamas.

Oh well. That’s why Magnus had magic; to get syrup off of his children’s pajamas. Obviously. 

Soon enough, they were all ready to go, warlock marks and runes glamored. They left for the animal shelter. They had checked beforehand, and there were plenty of cats in the shelter. All they had to do is hope that one of the cats there would be a good fit.

“Do you think they have magic cats?” Max asked.

“Probably not,” Magnus said. He didn’t think magic cats existed, but he wasn’t about to tell his three-year-old that. But he also wasn’t gonna lie, so middle-ground answer it was.

Before they knew it, they were there. The process started fairly quickly, since they were the only ones there, and the only necessity they had for the cat was that it had to be good with young children.

“Most people want kittens,” the worker explained. “So it’s a breath of fresh air to get a family that doesn’t care about the age of the cat.”

Soon enough, the worker brought in a cat. A few years old, nameless, good with kids. Once Max and Rafe saw the cat, they started petting it (“him”, the worker corrected). He was a good cat, didn’t cuddle up, but also didn’t try to scratch the kids, at least not immediately. It was good that they already had some practice with Church, Magnus thought. They already roughly knew how to act around a cat.

After seeing that cat, Magnus knew he was the one. That was their cat.

And he had already thought of the perfect pun name for him.

“Chairman Meow?” Alec said, his face scrunching up. Obviously, he didn’t think much of that name. But, their kids, however, loved it. They showed all the signs of being excited little kids who liked the name of their cat. So, Alec’s face unscrunched, and Chairman Meow it was.

“You are my meow friend,” Max said, trying to hold the cat. Chairman Meow looked very unamused, for a cat.

They left the shelter after filling out all the paperwork and paying. Alec was holding the cat carrier, Chairman inside. Before they had left, Magnus summoned all the cat supplies they needed into a guest room to deal with once they got back. 

“Daddy?” Rafe asked, looking to Alec.

“Yes, Rafe?” Alec responded.

“Can I hold the cat?”

Alec said yes, and handed the carrier to Rafael. They continued walking to the car, and Magnus could hear Rafe saying something to the cat. Listening a bit closer, he realized that Rafe was talking to the cat in Spanish. 

Magnus didn’t regret agreeing to get a cat one bit.

A few weeks later, the cat was fully integrated into their household. Magnus did end up being the main caretaker of the cat, but there was no complaint there. He loved cats, and was glad to have one again. The kids got along with the cat, and would help feed the cat sometimes. Alec got along with the cat. The cat got along with all of them. It was great.

“It’s good that Chairman likes you,” Magnus said one day.

“Why’s that?” Alec asked.

“It reminds of a phrase I used to say, back in the day when I had cats. I never date anyone my cat doesn’t like.”

Alec laughed. “Magnus, we’ve been together for five years and we have two kids,” he said, still giggling as he said it.

“I know,” Magnus said. “Statement still stands, though.”

On another night, everyone had fallen asleep already, except for Magnus and Chairman Meow. Magnus had been working on a potion, and the Chairman liked to wander around the house at night. Magnus picked up the cat and walked to the bedroom, putting the cat in the cat bed before getting into bed with an already-sleeping Alec.

“Goodnight, Alexander,” Magnus said, knowing he wouldn’t get a response, given that Alec was asleep.

“Goodnight, Chairman,” Magnus added, looking at the cat.

Chairman Meow meowed back.

Life with a cat was good.

**Author's Note:**

> "you are my meow friend" is from TLIL (from GotSM)
> 
> "i never date anyone my cat doesn't like" is from Kissed (on CC's website)


End file.
